Crock Pot Pasta Fagioli

As winter approaches, I tend to turn to my crock pot for most our dinners. I love my crock pot! This was a new recipe that I am glad I tried. It was warm, delicious and very filling. It taste alot like the Pasta Fagioli soup from Olive Garden. It made a ton so if you aren't cooking for a large group, I would try to half the recipe. Definitely a remake!

Crock Pot Pasta Fagioli

From: A Year of Slow Cooking

Ingredients.

1 pound lean ground beef, browned and drained

1/2 large red onion, chopped (I just put in onion powder)

1 cup carrots, chopped

2 celery stalks, sliced

2 cans (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes (and juice)

1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

4 cups beef broth

1 jar (16.5 oz) pasta sauce

2 tsp oregano

1 T Tabasco sauce

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1/2 cup dry pasta, to add at end of cooking time

Brown the meat on the stove top, and drain well. Let it cool a bit.

Chop up the carrots, onion, and celery. Add it to the empty crock pot. Drain and rinse the beans, and add them. Add the whole cans of tomatoes, and the pasta sauce. Add the beef broth. Add the salt, pepper, oregano, and Tabasco sauce. Stir in your meat.

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or high for 4. When the vegetables are tender, stir in the 1/2 cup of dry pasta.

Cover and cook for another hour on low, or until the pasta is tender. It will swell quite a bit. Serve with a bit of parmesan cheese if you have it.

**Use a 6 quart or larger crock pot, or cut the recipe in half.